WBM346Z Build Journal

Whilst starting the preparation and install for my Karbonius CSL Carbon Fibre Roof I started thinking about the final overall style of the car again. It particularly came to the front of my mind when a friend, who was working with me on the roof install, asked what the deal with the CS badge on the boot was. I realised tat whilst that choice had made sense to me it may not really land with others who are unfamiliar with BMWs and understand the history of the CS badging or the idea of what the Clubsport moniker encapsulates. From previous research and investigations into Clubsport branding from BMW that I could use to keep the style I knew of the somewhat rare E46 330i Clubsport so i thought I should take another look to see if there was anything from that that might help pull the theme together at all. It was at that point that I came across the ///M Clubsport door sills that are used on the  E46 330i Clubsport.  They struck me as perfect to help tie the theme together. They a...

So hanging around on the Australia sub-forum of E46Fanatics the other day I stumbled across someone trying to part with a brand new Karbonius CSL Carbon Fibre Roof. Didn't think much of it to start with, it's something I always planned to do in the long run but since all the spending on my build thus far it was a step too far in costs. Although after a few days of no one snapping it up, which i was surprised by, I decided to get in contact with the guy and see if we could make a deal that suited us both. Turns out we could, he needed to part with it and I had a desire to get it under market value and we met amicably in the middle. So now with zero planning or preparation, or general thought on other parts required or costs involved, I have myself a Karbonius CSL Carbon Fibre Roof!

As part of the overall theme of my car build I have wanted to set my car apart from other less modified or standard E46 M3s whilst staying true to a BMW styling. I wanted the car to look like it could have come off the factory floor as a BMW option package and drive well on the street, whilst also tearing up on the track. This is part of why for most of my build I have referred to it as a Clubsport build and this gave me the idea to try capture that naming and apply it to the theme of the car. There was never officially a BMW E46 M3 Clubsport as the BMW E46 M3 CS that Europe got was actually a Coupe Sport and obviously the CSL was the pinnacle model which as discussed previously I cannot really replicate from. So I started thinking about badging and labeling and was reminded of some of the M3Forum guys with Supercharged M3s who use a CSL badge but switch it around to give themselves a ///M3 sc which I always thought was kind of cool and set them apart without being too tacky. The use o...

As part of the overall Clubsport theme I am going with for this build (both in looks and functionality) I decided the car needed a bit of something for the interior, given that I currently had a pretty average set of Titan Shadow interior trims. I weighed up heavily between a original BMW set of Brushed Aluminium Trim or an aftermarket Carbon Fibre option (only premium like Karbonius, not stick on covers). I also had to consider what would happen with the rest of the interior when deciding which would suit. Understanding I cannot run CSL styled parts as the car need to have original theme for Targa Australia but also wanting to set my car apart from standard E46 M3's I decided to go with aftermarket Carbon Fibre interior trims. I believe the Carbon Fibre style for these pieces is true to what BM<W would do (given the use of carbon fibre in the CSL and in subsequent M3 interior trim fit outs) but also wasn't as widely used as standard BMW options. I also thought it would work...

As part of the Targa Australia Regulations the car must be fitted with a Goodridge G-Link quick disconnect coupling (shown above) for fuel sampling as per M5 of the Targa Australia Regulations: Luckily thanks to my previous install of the Radium Automotive Fuel Rail I now had an AN connection at the back of the fuel rail and at the outlet of the Fuel Pressure Regulator. Now due to the clearance it was not possible to neatly install a take-off at the rear of the fuel rail where the current AN fuel line connects to so the easiest place to setup a take-off for a fuel sample point was off the Fuel Pressure Regulator. So to achieve this I purchased a SpeedFlow Tee-Piece (-06AN female to male with a male off-take). As you can see in the below photo I was then able to off-take from this point for the fuel sample connection. The fuel sample line then follows the fuel rail line out from the Fuel Pressure Regulator and then splits off and follows the Oil Dipstick Tube up to the Left Hand strut t...

Now while I had the dash out of the car to get in and replace the heater core and AC Evaporator I figured it was a good time to apply an anti-glare finish to the dash. Previously I had purchased the anti-glare dash kit and tools through HARD Motorsport so I got stuck into it. Its reasonably straight forward to do but hard to get right. I highly recommend the flocking applicator you can get through HARD Motorsport if you chose to do this yourself as it made a consistent overall finish a lot easier. The hard part was getting the glue painted on nice and consistently and then blasting with the flock before it started to dry. Here is a collection of photos of my efforts and the finish: With the dash out I also noticed the rust that had started to bloom on the dash frame as it is unpainted. I thought it was a little over the top to get it painted but also didn't like leaving something completely unpainted. I had a fair bit of a can of Wurth Rust-Stop Primer and Zich Rich Weld-Thru Prime...

While waiting for my engine and ECU to be delivered I thought I would try and confirm if I have a MK60 DSC Module. This would allow me to enable M-Track Mode (CSL style DSC) through INPA when I get the car back together. Firstly I had to try figure out my modules serial / part number. Unfortunately this is very hard to do with the unit installed but I really didn't want to disassemble it... despite the fact the rest of the car is in pieces... To do this I used and Inspection Mirror and my camera to take a photo of the back of the unit where the identification information is. As you can see from the picture (although inverted by the mirror), I have a 10.0960-0813.3 unit. Next I did a bit of research on the MK60 DSC Module. There are a few good threads on the topic: MK60 DSC Thread MK60 ABS Standalone Info So it turns out the 0813.3 unit is the same hardware as the CSL unit but with a different software version. It can be modified or re-flashed with the CSL software,...

As I have decided to keep my current transmission in it's current state, without a rebuild, I thought it might be prudent to check up on that state of the transmission by getting some oil analysis done on the transmission fluid. Unfortunately the sample wasn't going to be very good, as the transmission was out of the car, I wouldn't be able to follow any of the standard sample taking guidelines. I figured it would only be a baseline sample to check the condition and compare future samples against so it shouldn't be too crucial. Using the new sampling pump and sampling kit I got from ALS Tribology I drew a sample and sent it off for testing.

I made an order for a few Carbon Fibre parts I had been looking at for some time now. These were some Carbon Fibre Fog Light Covers (with Brake Cooling ducts) and a Carbon Fibre rear deck lip spoiler from JC Sportline. The Carbon Fibre Fog Light Covers I was after for a styling way to be able to plumb up the HARD Motorsport Brake Cooling Backing Plates whilst also looking stylish and maintaining the stock fog lights. The Carbon Fibre rear deck lip spoiler was to balance out the Carbon Fibre Fog Light Covers at the front by adding some Carbon Fibre to the rear. Due to the Targa Australia regulations I can only run panels that are the same shape and style as original. As a result I cannot run any CSL panels, so no front Carbon Fibre lip or CSL front bumper, no Carbon Fibre rear diffuser or CSL trunk. I am hoping that balanced with the Carbon Fibre at the front this will all up look balanced and stylish whilst being tasteful but making it clear that the car isn't stock. I...

Now it was time to get around to trying to install my new Syncro Design Works RTAB's. As I had not borrowed the RTAB tool from Syncro Design Works I was going to have to try figure this out on my own. At first I attempted to rig up a press on the outer ring of the RTAB using my 3-jaw puller which was more complicated than you would think. This did work quite effectively but annoyingly there wasn't much space in the jaws for how deep the press was so I had to use a somewhat flimsy grease cap to try push on the outer ring. This worked for about half the press then it completely crushed itself so I aborted before any pressure was applied to the bearing's inner race. Unfortunately I didn't manage to snap any pictures during this operation so all I have is this photo of where I had to stop: Luckily I have a mate who has a bearing press anyway so I wasn't completely out of options. This was an easy option for me as my Rear Trailing Arm was out of the car as part ...

Now I had some time and while the Fuel tank was out I thought it was time to install the new Radium Automotive Fuel Pump Install Kit (with Walbro pump). The instructions provided by Radium Automotive for this are extremely straight forward. In general I followed these instructions although I did make a few adjustments along the way to better suit my build. Radium Automotive Fuel Pump Install Kit Instructions Instead of reusing the plastic convoluted tube I decided to run a new line using Gates Submersible Fuel hose. Unfortunately due to the bend radius of the hose it was getting quite close to kinking when installed in the correct manner. To solve this I got a hose anti-kink spring from a local hose supplier. It wasn't the exact size required but it was tight enough to the hose that it would not be able to kink completely flat, the outlet pressure from the pump should keep the hose "open" providing it doesn't completely kink. So whilst not completely optimal, I st...

So the Syncro Design Works RTAB's arrived today and I have the opportunity to open them up and finally have a look. They came very well packed and with a set of printed instructions for those who have never removed / reinstalled RTAB's on their E46 M3 before: Due to the restrictive costs of International shipping I chose not to borrow the RTAB tool from Syncro Design Works (although for others this is an option, it just requires a deposit and must be returned within 30days). As a result I was going to have to find a way to install these with the tools I had at my disposal which is either a 3-jaw puller or a mates bearing press. That is a job for another time...

Now that the car will have Turner Motorsport FCAB's and ECS Tuning RSM's it seemed only fitting to get some monoball design RTAB's as well. I had been researching these on and off as part of selecting the other monoballs for the car but hadn't fully decided yet as I still had basically new PowerFlex RTAB's installed. I found there was a few options out there: Dinan Fall-Line Motorsport Syncro Design Works BimmerWorld Turner Motorsport   There may be others but these are all I was able to find and look into during my search. From what I have researched the Dinan option are supposed to be amazing, with nothing but positive reviews, although they are also easily the most expensive. The BimmerWorld option have also been around for a while, with mixed reviews. The two new options to market are the Fall-Line Motorsport and Syncro Design Works. Both seem to be great options set at a reasonable price point. Not a terribly large amount of details on each (in terms of...